Blog

Black Pearls VC announces successful investment exit from PHK

After nearly two and a half years, Black Pearls VC completed the investment in PHK, a company working – under Hem Poland brand – in the field of industrial hemp cultivation and processing. As the result of the sales of PHK shares, Black Pearls VC received several times return on invested capital.

Owned by PHK, HemPoland has been the first private entity in Poland to obtain a license and commence cultivation and processing of hemp. The company produces hemp extracts of exceptional quality in terms of guaranteed performance of CBD, cannabinoid, terpenoid and flavonoid parameters.

During the investment, Hem Poland introduced a series of Cannabi Gold products – dietary supplements based on golden fiber hemp extracts with a high content of cannabinoids to the European markets (including in the Netherlands and Switzerland). The company also started cooperation with a strategic distributor in the United States and implemented an integrated system of management of cultivation and production processes.

Black Pearls VC invested in PHK, the owner of the HemPoland brand, in June 2015, and the vehicle for financing the transaction was the Black Pearls Seed Fund.

Working with PHK is not only the satisfaction of a successful financial investment. – comments Alexander Lubański, Managing Partner at Black Pearls VC.– The company is rebuilding a branch of industry that has used to be well developed in Poland thanks to an innovative approach to processing and an effective market strategy. We are happy that we could participate in this.

In recent years, there has been an upward trend in the use of fiber hemp not only in the field of supplementation, but also in the medical, food and building industries, both in Poland and in the world. – says Łukasz Mańkowski, Investment Director at Black Pearls VC. – We will continue to observe this reviving sector and are interested in further investments in this area.

Cultivation and processing of hemp in Poland have a rich tradition dating back to the period before the World War II, when the first research on crops, processing technology and fiber production was carried out. In the 1960s, hemp cultivation was already conducted on areas of 30,000 hectares. However, subsequent years have brought a reduction in crops and their decline practically to zero in the first decade of the 21st century.

Cannabis cultivars grown in Poland contain less than 0.2% of the THC psychoactive substance and their cultivation does not constitute a narcotic hazard, according to the legal regulations.